HELP!!!-My hen is EGG BOUND- day 2- HELP!!!

[hhave]

My White Plymouth Rock hen that is 1 year old is egg bound. Her backside under the vent is swollen so much that her feathers are sticking out and the skin is dark pink. I found her yesterday morning still on the roosting bar and absolutely still even when I picked her up and took her out to the fresh food she didn't move. She was awake. I brought her in the house and gave her a warm bath 3 times over the last day and a half. The first bath I rubbed olive oil one the flexing vent (it flexed a ton). The second time I did the same thing. The third bath I used a medicine dropper to insert olive oil into the vent. We kept her inside until this afternoon, when she was increasingly agitated and I figured she maybe wanted her normal nesting box so I put her out into the chicken yard with the others. She roamed around like normal pecking at the ground for a couple of hours, walking a bit like a penguin, but otherwise fine. Then she went to the nesting box and stayed in for 2 hours, she came out for a bit before she went back in for an hour or so before she was out again and then it was night. The other chickens pecked at her just a tad, but really had no problem with her return, although I almost think they avoided her, maybe because her stink which I will describe next.

In the past day she has eaten fine since I brought her in, eating egg, yogurt, mozzarella cheese (which she loved, but I've been informed is not healthy for chickens) and I gave her regular feed and grit. Her poop isn't right, runny and more white than normal and after her bath she sprayed out a ton of what I believe may have been water mixed in the poop. She has been fooling with her oil gland a lot and has some sort of staining on the feathers around it (dark gray stains). And she stinks! I thought maybe she had an impacted or soured crop, but the stink isn't coming from her mouth, maybe it's the egg stinking or can an oil gland stink? She stunk like that when I found her yesterday, but it has gotten much worse (maybe over oil production from bathing although I'm really not even sure that is possible.

I've read about breaking the egg to get it out, although that seems highly unlikely to save her. Is there a way that I can lube up my gloved finger and gently scoop out the egg? Should I keep her away from the others in a separate pen or indoors? She did seem to enjoy getting back with the others (of which there are only 5).

What should my next step be? This is my daughter's hen, we really want to save her, but am I having false hope?

Thanks so much for any help you can offer!

 

[Miss Lydia]

When you put her in for the soaks did you massage her tummy towards the vent? you have to do this gently so not to break the egg. also i have heard of others doing the lube and trying to get the egg out, again you have to be very careful so not to break the egg. here is some info that might help..
Out Of The BrooderFrom: CanadaRegistered: 12/24/2007Posts: 91PM Website

Re: Eggbound White Pekin question


Egg bound hens

A hen is said to be egg bound when she fails to lay her egg

This is a common condition, and may result from inflammation of the oviduct, malformed or double yolker egg, or a too large egg in a young pullet


She will sit like a penguin
She will bawk bawk bawk
The bird seems very restless
She will drink little and eat little
She will tend to stand all hunched up
She visits the nest regularly in an attempt to lay her egg
Hew oviduct may end up protrude due to excessive pushing by her to eject the egg; internal haemorrhage or exhaustion may occur and the fowl may die
She may smell badly
Her vent will look quite red and protrude
She may have faecal matter that has built up behind the egg, if you see white liquid that will be her urates trying to pass (urine in chickens)

Sit her in a tub of warm soapy water
Make sure the vent is submerged for about 30 minutes, this may seem like a long time, but you have to relax the vent area and make is subtle for the egg to pass through, it really does help the hen, 85% of the time this will be all that you will need to do for her and the egg will pass out with a little push from her

You can rub some lubricant around the vent area if you think that may help too, usually it doesn’t help the bird, but for some reason it helps the owners feel better that they are doing something , KY jelly, petroleum jelly, Vaseline or Olive Oil all work fine. But seeing as the egg is stuck further up this will probably help you feel better and do nothing for the hen

DO NOT STICK YOUR FINGER INTO THE VENT TO FEEL FOR THE EGG... not a good idea.. you can do damage to the hen and also break the egg, especially if it is a soft shell egg.. then you will have even more trouble .

Make sure you isolate her from the other hens, or they will peck at her vent causing more damage

Put her into an isolation cage, put plenty of news paper down first and then put heated towels down they will act like a heat pad for her, no drafts when she is wet or she will catch a chill

You can heat up towels in your microwave, works a treat
If you have a heat pad that would be even better, put plenty of towels over it or it will get messy
Leave her for a little while to see if she passes the egg, if not, repeat the warm water and soap again

Some people just use the heating pads, this sometimes seems to relax the muscles and allow the egg to slip out

Last resort
If this doesn’t work, you may have to resort to removing the egg manually, not a nice task, and she will complain about what you are doing bitterly, you will need two people to do this task

Using KY jelly, Petroleum jelly or Vaseline, insert your finger in the vent
With your other hand you can press gently on her abdomen moving the egg down the oviduct towards the cloaca

Once you can see the egg, if it won’t pass, then rupture the egg and gently remove all the shell

Some have suggested you use a sharp instrument, I would not recommend this at all it could result in causing the hen internal injuries

The shell of the egg will be very sharp when broken and could also damage the chicken internally

Once you have broken the shell, make sure you remove every particle carefully

The cloaca should then be washed with a weak warm water/salt solution, this is to make sure all the egg contents and shell has been removed from inside the hen, if it isn’t it could cause bacteria to start growing inside her, and then you’ve got an even bigger problem to solve

Once the egg has ejected you will want to keep an eye on her for a while

There may be another egg backed up in her oviduct system, especially if she lays an egg every day or every other day

Sometimes they absorb the egg, but this is very unlikely and very unusual

If you can’t find the egg and it has gone from the hen, more than likely she has eaten it shell and all

If it has ruptured inside her, you should look for small pieces of shell, or evidence of any cuts around the vent area

Just remember while your looking and sticking your finger in places she would prefer you didn’t, the egg shells can be quite sharp and may cut you and her

If you do find any cuts around her cloaca, rinse with a weak solution of hydrogen peroxide and water

Watch her for listlessness, dull eyes, and signs of fever
Infection can come on pretty quick

Keep a close eye on her, this could happen again to her and she will need immediate action to fix the problem


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Glady's, 2 kids, 1 hubby, 3 chickens, 1 dog
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#3 12/25/2007 9:34 pm



silkiechickenere is some info that might help,

 

[hhave]

I did massage her toward the vent. She did not like that at all. I have read that info during my massive researching the past day. Some helpful info there. How long can a hen go like this before we think it might be needed to scoop it out?

 

[Miss Lydia]

I'm sorry I don't know that answer, I haven't had to deal with that and hope I never do, I wouldn't think it could go on long though..

 

[jjthink]

Also, often recommended on this site is a crushed 'Tums' (for the calcium). Crush, mix with a little water, and administer via dropper by gently dribbling along her beak line, so she swallows on her own and doesn't choke.

An eggbound hen can die of heart failure. It is possible her best chance is veterinary help.

Also, keep her in a largely dark area so her body stops producing additional eggs for now. You can let her see her friends for short intervals.

JJ

 

[hhave]

She is roosting in the coop with the others. How long should I let this go before trying to remove the egg? Tomorrow will be the third day.

 

[welasharon]

Mine went for probably four days at least before I noticed it. Had I notice earllier I think it would not have been so bad maybe? She is a bantam and just could not get it out. She would strain and grunt each time. I tried all you did as well. I finally decided I just had to get it out. I had her in my lap and the next time she pushed I grabbed her behind the egg and pushed/worked it toward the vent. I could see it crown so I pushed the edges of the vent around the egg not letting the egg slip back. I was afraid the egg would break but figured she was going to die anyway so I had to try. Out it popped. I could not see any damage to her vent but evidently it was traumatized as she then got vent gleet. While i was treating her for that I realized she was blind. I think she lost her sight, no light made laying difficult (my guess) and then domino effect. I wish you luck. My vet was out of town for the week or I would have taken her in although he doesn't know much about chickens.
sharon

 

[hhave]

Thanks Welasharon, I just read your experience on another thread. I think I may try that tomorrow. I'll call the vet first. Luckily our vet has chickens! Wish me luck!

 

[welasharon]

I do! You may want to ask the vet about some nystatin to prevent her from getting vent gleet if she doesn't already have it. It smells really sickly sweet and is gooey. Let us know how it goes.
sharon